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Monday, August 11, 2008

DARANGEN-MINDANAO EPIC POETRIES

DARANGEN-MINDANAO EPIC POETRY

The Darangan tells of the sentimental and romantic adventures of noble warriors, one of them, is about a warrior-prince called Bantugan.. Prince Bantugan was the brother of the chieftain of a village called Bumbaran. Bantugan owned a magic shield, was protected by divine spirits called "Tonongs" and was capable of rising from the dead. Once his enemies attacked Bembaran, thinking he was dead. In the nick of time, Bantugan’s soul was recovered and he saved the village.

There is also an episode, where Prince Bantugan was on a quest and fought his enemies with his magic Kampilan (Native sword). Soon, he got tired and fell on to the water. A crocodile delivered him to his enemies, but he regained his strength, escaped his captors, and commands an oar less ship and won the battle.

There were also “Darangen epic poetries that relates stories of wars about abducted princesses. Just like the chronicles of the Trojan War.

The DarangEn is one of the oldest and longest Philippine Epic poetries. Several nights were needed to recite the twenty five beautiful chapters. The Darangan, sung in it’s original, possessed a sustained beauty and dignity, it might be studied for it’s esthetic values alone.

SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA

The darangen is an epic chant associated with the Maranao people, with the core area of habitation being the province of Lanao del Sur in the island of Mindanao. Although other variations exist among the Maranao ethnic communities living in other areas, among the Maguindanao ethnic group, and Manobo groups to the Pacific Coast. The one in Lanao del Sur is considered the most definitive.

It is a pre-Islamic form of primarily oral literature, presently existing in an Islamic context. Implications contained in the epic point to influences reaching as far west as India. The epic is the culmination of all these influences and the core culture of the Maranao

The traditional Maranao belief and value systems are founded on the truisms of the darangen. The mythologies contained therein constitute the foundation of indigenous beliefs and value system. It is a body of traditions and functions as a societal lynchpin since it is a record of the way of the ancestors. The word “darangen” comes from the Maranao word “darang,” which means “to narrate, in the form of a song or chant.”

The already recorded darangen is composed of about 17 cycles composed in iambic tetrameter or catalectic trochaic tetrameter. Each cycle is independent of the others, if taken individually, but a study of the adventures and lives of the characters in the songs show that the cycles are connected to one another in a logical progression.

The darangen epic is one of the lengthiest of the Philippine epics. The available versions alone are contained in eight volumes which comprise 47 books or verses, in 25 chapters that can be chanted in as many days. Preliminary studies suggest that the epic has some 72,000 lines.